Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to swinging and hitting systems to teach hand eye coordination and proper swinging techniques and, more specifically, to a tennis racket with a receptacle or u-shaped portion in which to accommodate a torso of a user with grips on opposite sides of the receptacle.
Background of the Invention
Tennis is a popular sport among children, men, and women. Although popular, it does not mean that the sport is easy. Specifically, it can be difficult to properly swing a racket, while still maintaining eye contact on the ball during the swing. Oftentimes, the player does not have good enough hand eye coordination initially, and must work to hone this skill to properly wield a racket to hit the ball. More swing and hitting training may be needed as the player develops to reiterate the importance of fundamentals. Other issues affecting players include maintaining the proper balance during the swing, rhythm of the swing, proper plane of the swing, and proper hand placement on the racket.
Numerous attempts to produce a training racket that addresses these issues exist in the prior art. The following patents discuss background art related to the above discussed subject matter:
U.S. Pat. No. 5,230,506 issued Jul. 27, 1993, to Cipriano, discloses a sport training device having a hollow shaft into which is connected a flexible hollow rod which is secured to the shaft in such a manner that a region of the flexible hollow rod located inside of the shaft is separated by an air space from an interior wall of the shaft. A ball-shaped target is connected to the flexible hollow rod at the target end of the device. A rubber or rubber-like handle is attached to the shaft at the holding end of the training device.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,379,261 issued Apr. 30, 2002, to Hart, discloses a golf swing training and muscle exercising apparatus or swing trainer is provided which is designed to be used indoors as well as outdoors. The golf swing trainer includes a double bent shaft having upper and lower end portions separated by a center portion, the center portion being interconnected, at opposite ends thereof, with each of the upper and lower end portions by first and second joining portions. The upper and lower end portions are substantially straight and have respective center lines, wherein the center line for the upper end portion is the first center line, the center line for the center portion is the second center line and the center line for the lower end portion is the third center line, the first center line lying at an angle A to the second center line and the second center line lying at an angle B to the third center line. The first center line, second center line and third center line preferably lie in the same plane and angle B is preferably greater than angle A. The preferred golf swing trainers will include a training grip and a weighted head which is detachably engaged with the distal or lower end of the shaft. The weighted head will preferably weigh from about 0.25 to about 3.0 pounds.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,041,017, issued May 9, 2006, to Carfo, discloses a training aid for teaching batters how to swing properly. The aid resembles a baseball bat which has a front portion which has been flattened, and an angled device has been attached to the handle. The angled portion has a flat portion which is not quite parallel with the flat portion on the front of the bat.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,235,024, issued Jun. 26, 2007 to Lefebvre, et al., discloses a training bat having a handle portion with a knob end and a barrel receiving end, a hitting portion, and a means for tethering said handle portion to said hitting portion. The means for tethering is selected from an eye bolt assembly, a link assembly, or an eye bolt. The eye bolt assembly joins a wood fitting portion secured within the barrel receiving end of the handle portion to the hitting portion by one or more chain links, as well as joins a wood hitting portion to the one or more chain links. The link assembly joins a plug secured within the barrel receiving end of the handle portion to the hitting portion by one or more chain links.
U.S Patent Application No. 2006/0025246, published Feb. 2, 2006, to Forney, discloses a swing training including a bat body having a handle, a barrel and a tapered section joining the handle. The bat body is adapted for hitting a pitched ball. A locking grip is adjustably fixed to the handle and has a bottom end knob and a top end knob. A sliding grip is mounted on the handle and movable between the locking grip and the barrel. The sliding grip has a bottom end knob for stopping the movement of the sliding grip in the direction of the locking grip.
U.S Patent Application No. 2012/0172157 published Jul. 5, 2008, to McCrory, discloses a hand held baseball or Softball training device for assisting a batter in learning proper swing mechanics which include a light weight 1″ hollow aluminum tube having two ends, a hand grip defining sleeve with a rubber stop disposed about the first end of the tube and a rubber cap on the second end, a lightweight aluminum oval sweet spot simulation component which is movable along the 1″ hollow aluminum tube so as to prove a visual indication to the batter as to the flight of the ball after contact which determines the position that the wrist are when contact is made with the ball.
There exists a need for an improved hitting and swinging implement that addresses the problems discussed hereinbefore. Consequently, those skilled in the art will appreciate the present invention.